New: Academy chief executive, who oversaw primary school with the highest number of permanent exclusions on record in England, put forward by government to be the next Children’s Commissioner. https://www.educationuncovered.co.uk/diary/diary/148771/academy-chief-executive-who-oversaw-primary-school-with-the-highest-number-of-permanent-exclusions-on-record-in-england-put-forward-by-government-to-be-the-next-childrens-commissioner.thtml
New piece on Rachel de Souza.

This piece looks at past investigations around de Souza’s Inspiration Trust and its record on pupil departures, including the place of two IT primary schools in the top 10 for most permanent exclusions in 2018-19. https://www.educationuncovered.co.uk/diary/diary/148771/academy-chief-executive-who-oversaw-primary-school-with-the-highest-number-of-permanent-exclusions-on-record-in-england-put-forward-by-government-to-be-the-next-childrens-commissioner.thtml

One of those schools, which is in special measures, saw Ofsted highlighting in two reports its fixed-term exclusions, though strangely not mentioning permanent ones.

As has been reported, the trust was also under questioning by Ofsted over pupil departures at one of its secondary schools, East Point.

Another, the Hewett Academy, Norwich, which has seen pupil numbers fall, saw large drops in the roll between year 10 and 11 in 2016-17 and 2017-18.

The trust featured high up in a national league table I compiled in 2018 of academy trusts and local authorities with the largest drop-off in school pupil numbers between years 10 and 11: https://www.theguardian.com/education/2018/nov/06/academy-trusts-gcse-students-disappearing-prior-to-exams

The Inspiration trust also saw a 10 per cent fall in the roll of Great Yarmouth Charter Academy in the nine months after its takeover by the IT, under controversial headteacher Barry Smith.

The behaviour policy introduced at Charter, of course, was itself very controversial, as was that instigated later at Cromer Academy.

All of this seems like a record on pupil movement which needs a lot of scrutiny, given the high profile of this role.

There are other controversies around de Souza, of course, including the investigations we did back in 2014 about prior knowledge of Ofsted and other matters. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/oct/18/emails-academies-ofsted-inspectors-rachel-de-souza https://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/feb/07/teachers-inquiry-schools-ofsted-superhead

The new piece also looks at de Souza’s extensive connections in and around DfE policymaking, and Brexit, including at “Parents and Teachers for Excellence”, where in 2018 she signed a letter which took issue with media coverage of school exclusions. https://www.educationuncovered.co.uk/diary/diary/148771/academy-chief-executive-who-oversaw-primary-school-with-the-highest-number-of-permanent-exclusions-on-record-in-england-put-forward-by-government-to-be-the-next-childrens-commissioner.thtml

That tweet probably should have read "...in and around government policymaking", as supporters of Parents and Teachers for Excellence included both writers of last year's Conservative manifesto, one of whom is head of the Number 10 policy unit. PTE's website not v active now,tho.